New Jersey’s death metal sensationalists Sentient Horror has been a band I have been following very heavily since 2019 after releasing the amazingly crafted sophomore full-length recording of Morbid Realms which was a fantastically driven record to incorporate HM2 styled death metal with killer rock and roll signatures and was paying homages to their distinctive sound making it captivating and engaging all around. Now fast forward to 2022, we have the latest offering from this band titled Rites Of Gore which is the third full-length album and is released through Redefining Darkness Records.
Musically, if you know their past material you’ll notice that their blend incorporating elements of Swedish death metal, European and American is all over the place in which to me these musicians are heavily inspired by Entombed, Dismember, Asphyx, Jungle Rot and Grave for creating some of the most rawest, filthiest, slime-crawling and punishing flavors of extreme music that have me in a very unsettling atmosphere and for this record in particular, they’ve outdone themselves to make this album a much more refined and improvement over Morbid Realms. The first half of the album is a earth-shaking onslaught of killer guitar riffs, solid drum work, great production and the technicality being represented by these wonderful individuals have really solidified their appreciation in creating the most uncompromising and structured album they’ve done to date in terms of consistency, skill, deliverance and execution.
Stylistically, this is a classic Stockholm inspired album as if I have admired their devotion to create a record that not only is flawless start to finish but if Left Hand Path was released in 2022, this would be a disgustingly huge barrier of blistering soundscapes as the guitars, drums, bass, production and vocals give it a more raw and distinctive quality as the songs are well produced, designed and the detail from its depth-charging arrangements gives it a huge Edge Of Sanity vibe for having these progressive like undertones. I would have to say not only I was pleasantly surprised by the maturity and overall listening experience to hear this front to back, but Rites Of Gore will be discussed as a modern-day classic for the underground death metal scene and if you’re fans of HM2, European or American death metal then I would highly recommend listening to Sentient Horror’s Rites Of Gore.
Overall Score: 9.0/10
Review by Jake Butler
